Relocating an elderly loved one into a nursing facility is often the toughest decision a family can make. Many times, the family will perform extensive research in the hopes of finding the most comfortable and safest environment. Unfortunately, the incident rate involving mistreatment occurring in nursing homes throughout Tennessee has risen significantly over the last few years.
If your loved one was harmed while living in a Hamblen County nursing facility, contact the Tennessee Nursing Home Law Center attorneys now for immediate legal intervention. Let our team of abuse prevention lawyers work on your family’s behalf to ensure you receive monetary compensation to recover your damages.
This long-term care home is a "for-profit" 161-certified bed center providing cares and services to residents of Morristown and Hamblen County, Tennessee. The Medicare and Medicaid-participating facility is located at:
501 West Economy Road
Morristown, Tennessee 37814
(423) 581-5435
Life Care Center of Morristown Nursing Home
In addition to providing around the clock skilled nursing care, Life Care Center of Morristown Nursing Center offers other services. Additional focused care includes inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation.
Federal and state investigators can penalize any nursing home that has violated rules and regulations that resulted in harm or could have resulted in the harm of a resident. These penalties include imposing monetary fines and denying payment for Medicare services.
Within the last three years, federal investigators imposed a monetary fine against Life Care Center of Morristown Nursing Home for $3,250 on June 15, 2016, citing substandard care.
The nursing home also received one complaint over the last thirty-six months that resulted in a violation citation. Additional information about this nursing home can be found on the Tennessee Commission on Elder Abuse Website.
Your family can visit Medicare.gov and the Tennessee Department of Public Health website to obtain a complete list of all violations, citations, and deficiencies identified by investigators and surveyors.
According to Medicare, this facility maintains an overall rating of two out of five stars, including two out of five stars concerning health inspections, three out of five stars for staffing issues and two out of five stars for quality measures.
The state investigators determined that the facility “failed to follow physician’s orders for medication administration and failed to follow Physician ordered plans of care.” The investigation involved one resident “reviewed for unnecessary medication administration.” This “failure resulted in harm to [the resident].”
The survey team reviewed the resident’s Medical Records, and MAR (Medication Administration Record) showed that the resident received medication, and the staff had performed a Finger Stick Blood Sugar Reading.
A continued review by the surveyors indicated that the “Physician’s order had not been followed. [The record] revealed no instruction documented on the Medication Administration Record to hold [the resident’s medication] if the Finger Stick Blood Sugar reading was equal to or less than 100.” The resident’s blood Sugar reading measured between 74 earlier in the day and 91 later.
A subsequent review of the resident’s Interim Care Plan revealed that there was “no intervention added [on that day] regarding the guidelines for holding the [resident’s medication] for a blood sugar of 100 or less.” A review of the resident’s Electronic Nurse’s Note documented that 10:56 PM that night, the resident “was less responsive and drooling from the right side of the mouth.”
Emergency medical service was contacted, and the resident was documented as being sent out at 8:45 PM. A few minutes later, EMS had found the female sitting in a wheelchair with a blood sugar level of 72. A medication was ordered to treat low blood sugar levels.
Documentation from the emergency room indicates that at 10:17 PM that night, the patient had “confusion, decreased mental status, and decreased responsiveness.” By 11:20 PM, the resident blood sugar level was 31, where the critical range is less than 40.
Continued review revealed that the resident “was admitted to the hospital.” The Director of Nursing confirmed during an interview that the “facility failed to correctly transcribe physician’s orders and failed to follow Physician’s orders for [the administration of the resident’s medication].”
It was determined that “this failure resulted in harm to [the resident].”
Do you believe that your loved one was the victim of abuse or neglect while living at Life Care Center of Morristown Nursing Home? Contact the Tennessee nursing home abuse lawyers at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 for immediate legal intervention. We represent Hamblen County victims of abuse and neglect in all areas, including Morristown.
It is always free to discuss your case with our legal team. We provide a 100% “No Win/No-Fee” Guarantee, meaning you will owe us nothing until we can secure a financial recovery on your behalf. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
Sources:
Attorney Cameron Jehl
Licensed in Tennessee
Tennessee Nursing Home Injury Lawyer Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home